Mark October 13th on your calendar as the day the Republican dam broke. In this case, the dam was holding back the angst, disappointment, dismay and anger over the Cuccinelli campaign as it appears headed for defeat in November. The Washington Post was there to watch the carnage begin. First up, Tom Davis:

“It’s a party that is disunited, in flux, in transition and defeated,” said Thomas M. Davis, the former Republican congressman. “We have nominated a ticket that Virginians don’t want to buy.”

Next on the roster, Cory Stewart:

“I wish I was more optimistic — I’m a strong supporter of Ken — but it does not look very good for us out there,” said Cory Stewart, Republican chair of the Prince William County Board of Supervisors. “The environment for Republicans is toxic.”

And there are a few others quoted along the way, but the real meat comes from our own Shaun Kenney:

“People were feeling pretty good,” said Shaun Kenney, the former communications director for the state GOP and now a contributor to Bearing Drift, a conservative blog. Referring to the feeling then, he said: “We got the candidate who won’t back down. We’re going to have an honest, clear policy debate. We’re going to argue the merits, and we’re going to win.”

“Instead, it devolved into the precise opposite,” he said. Cuccinelli’s platform, he said, consisted of: “ ‘McAuliffe is a sleazebag and, oh, by the way, did we mention that McAuliffe is a sleazebag?’ That’s not enough. Ken needs a big idea, and he needs it yesterday.”

Yet Kenney does not agree with those Republicans who see Cuccinelli as too conservative for purple Virginia. Rather, he said, Cuccinelli has been constrained at a moment when standing tall for his long-held principles would have served him well.

Cuccinelli’s campaign “won’t let Ken be Ken,” Kenney said. He noted Cuccinelli’s decision not to appear with Sen.Ted Cruz (R-Tex.) at a recent dinner in Richmond.

“The base wanted to see him link arms with Cruz,” Kenney said. “At some point you dance with the one who brung you. You stay true to your friends.”

Chris LaCivita, the Cuccinelli campaign’s top consultant, will have none of it:

…Chris LaCivita, a senior Cuccinelli strategist, said, “It’s uncommon but not unheard of for what I consider to be poseurs to attack a campaign before it’s over.”

“It ain’t over yet,” he said. “We won’t concede, and shame on those who do.”

The spirit is admirable and yes, one should never concede defeat, especially before the votes are cast.

But even the bravest faces cannot mask the cold fact that Cuccinelli has not lead in a single poll since early July.

Is the race still volatile? To a degree it is. A soft Sarvis vote, combined with the polling data that has consistently shown voters dislike both major party candidates, indicates there is still some wiggle room in the final numbers.

Does Cuccinelli still have the ability to mount a charge? He has in the past. But it all depends upon energy. Ken has always had it. The Virginia electorate, though, doesn’t seem to have the same spark.

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Aside from being married to a failed LG candidate, does anyone even consider Davis a relevant voice of the GOP these days? Could it be he’s upset his wife didn’t win? Nah, of course not.

Shaun’s quote is exactly on the money. Win or lose, Rexrode and LaCivita should be permanently bounced off of the RPV payrolls after this.

http://www.brianschoeneman.org/ Brian W. Schoeneman

Yes, Tom Davis is a relevant voice in the GOP these days. He remains one of, if not the, smartest strategists we have in the party, and his efforts internally and with a number of Republican groups keeps him relevant.

I have to disagree with Shaun. While there may be no big idea, the belief that somehow the campaign is keeping Ken from being Ken is just flat out ridiculous. Ken is not someone who is going to allow himself to be hemmed in by paid consultants. His entire career has been about being himself, and I have yet to see anything come out of this campaign that didn’t look, sound or feel like Ken. He’s being himself and running the campaign the way he wants to.

And, for the record, I find it hard to believe that any rational Republican wants to see anybody in the GOP link arms with Ted Cruz. Unlike Cruz, Ken has actually accomplished things. Putting Ken on stage with Ted Cruz makes Cruz look more useless than he already is.

http://www.dcdispatches.us/ Jason I. Poblete

I agree with you that Tom Davis is a relevant voice in the GOP, however, not sure what is gained right now talking about the internal matters of the GOP. Just gives ammunition to the Ds. P.S., how do you figure that serving as Texas Solicitor General and private law practice = not accomplishing things?

http://www.brianschoeneman.org/ Brian W. Schoeneman

He has not accomplished anything in the Senate. And I’m not familiar with his record as Solicitor General, other than recognizing that as Solicitor General, he wasn’t responsible for policy, simply defending the policies enacted by the legislature and the Governor. He’s not simply an advocate anymore, yet he hasn’t seemed to have figured that out yet.

http://www.dcdispatches.us/ Jason I. Poblete

Same could be said about others such as Rand Paul and Marco Rubio. For years I’ve discussed with fellow GOPers that we’re too concerned about controlling DC, looking for another political ‘savior’. The battle is in the localities and states, not across the river. Bring Cruz or just about any other non-Virginian out here would be a waste of time for so many reasons. KC can win without them.

Lee Vogler

I can name quite a few things Marco Rubio has accomplished in his legislative career, especially during his tenure as Florida’s Speaker of the House. Cruz on the other hand? Besides grandstanding, not a thing.

http://www.dcdispatches.us/ Jason I. Poblete

As a practicing lawyer, not sure I agree with you that serving as Solicitor General of Texas or, later, private practice would amount to “grandstanding”. We have a strong stable of leaders including Rubio, Paul, and, yes, Cruz, Lee, and many others. Let’s leave it at that because I suspect we’ll keep this thread going and we’re on the same page.

Lee Vogler

I was speaking more of his time in the US Senate but I agree, there’s no point in throwing stones at this time.

http://www.brianschoeneman.org/ Brian W. Schoeneman

There is a big difference between being an advocate for a client – as an attorney in private practice or the SG would be – and being responsible for policy and practical outcomes.

The only strong leader on the list you’ve made is Rubio. The rest have done little but grandstand. There are other senators in the same class! like Kelly Ayotte and Roy Blunt who will be or already are strong leaders, and part of their strength is working to accomplish things, not get their name ID up.

pinecone321

Kelly Ayotte doesn’t make a decision unless she gets the approval of John McCain first. We all know how popular McCain was in 08 right?

http://www.brianschoeneman.org/ Brian W. Schoeneman

Popular enough to win the nomination for President.

David Obermark

McCain might not have won in 08 anyway, but one of the things that led to his dismal performance in the general election was his goofy pick of Sarah Palin as his running mate, at least in my opinion. I do not know if he could have won, but I do know that if he had selected somebody more like himself, say his good friend Lindsey Graham, as his running mate, I would have voted and campaigned for him instead of Obama.

I still like McCain.

brucehmajors

Rofl. Palin clearly got McCain more votes. They would have won if the mortgage bubble hadn’t popped.

David Obermark

Somebody should pick you up off the floor and dust you off. McCain lost my vote with the pick of Palin. MY VOTE WENT TO OBAMA. Now, if hard core conservatives had not been pleased by McCain choosing a more moderate running mate, the worst that would have happened is that they would have stayed home or voted third party, not vote for the other guy.

Although Romney had already made enough mistakes to alienate the moderate base in his primary run, he did not learn from McCain’s mistake in choosing a running mate. Like McCain, he went hard right with his running mate pick and alienated moderates.

If you hard core conservatives are not going to believe it, then go ahead and nominate a hard core conservative (like Senator Cruz) to run against Hillary. After you get your hind ends handed to you after that, maybe then you will believe.

1AlaskaBorn2

Me, too, would have voted for McCain for President but his last, gasping stand to name Palin his VP running mate was a disaster. In no way was I going to vote for this uneducated, beauty queen with zero knowledge of the wider world around her. Made this decision prior to SNL and was very entertained by the anti-Palin skits. Yup, McCain was my choice until he caved to the Republican party and named Palin. This from a staunch, life-long, female, Bostonian Democrat.

http://www.brianschoeneman.org/ Brian W. Schoeneman

I have said the same about Rand Paul. I give Rubio credit for actually crafting a policy and trying to sell it, which is far more than either Paul or Cruz have done.

pinecone321

Yeah, Rubio went all in for amnesty. He didn’t craft the policy. He made it clear that he didn’t even know what all was in the Gang of 8 bill. He in fact said early on that he wouldn’t support the bill unless it had strong border security language. It doesn’t. It supports the path to citizenship first, and then kinda addresses border security later. There is supporting policy, putting your name on that policy, and tanking in every poll since. Rubio blew his chances at much of anything, and he deserves it.

http://www.brianschoeneman.org/ Brian W. Schoeneman

Check Cruz’s poll numbers. Rubio is far more viable, even after his stance on immigration, than Cruz is.

http://www.brianschoeneman.org/ Brian W. Schoeneman

Agreed. Unless you need them for fundraising – and Ken doesn’t – there’s no point pretending that what happens across the Potomac is related to Virginia politics.

Ken can win without them and his reaction to Cruz’s horribly timed and thought out grandstanding was precisely right for a Virginian and someone who wants to be Governor of Virginia.

Ken would be in a lot better position today if we were dealing with headlines about all the snafus which accompanied the launch of Obamacare rather than the current headlines, nevertheless, he can still win this race if everybody on his boat is rowing in the same direction instead of bellyaching about personal slights or wanting take the helm themselves.

Igor Shafarevich

Nonsense.

Cruz drives dialog because he understands and is able to defend the core ideas and institutions of Western civilization.

It is critically important to be on offense continuously in order to counter the Alinsky tactics of Hussein Obama and his Fabian comrades.

Cruz is one of the few who is able to do that because he actually understands the philosophy underpinning Western civilization and because he understands the rigid marxist ideology of Hussein Obama and the apparatchiks.

http://www.brianschoeneman.org/ Brian W. Schoeneman

What is nonsense is referring to the President by his middle name, referring to “Alinsky tactics,” and acting as if Cruz’s grandstanding had anything to do with core ideas of western civilization. Being a limelight craving neophyte is not a core idea of western civilization.

pinecone321

Is that really your best argument that some are calling the pres. Hussein? As to refering to Alinsky tactics, you’ve learned them well, and are applying them right here on this site against Ted Cruz.

“Pick the target, freeze it, personalize it, and polarize it.”

What part of that Alinsky rule have you not used against Ted Cruz? You sure haven’t done anything more than attack him as a neophyte that has accomplished nothing., all the while admitting that you have no knowledge of his accomplishments before he was elected to the Senate. How in the hel1 can you attack someone for not accomplishing anything when you admit to not even knowing their record? Then you attack him for accomplishing something, Solicitor General, you will never realize in your lifetime. Have you ever even dreamed of arguing before the SC 9 times as Cruz has done.

http://www.brianschoeneman.org/ Brian W. Schoeneman

Alinsky’s book is 226 pages long, but other than that sentence, which Rush quotes all the time, I don’t think I’ve ever heard any of the other rules for radicals. I didn’t pick the target – Cruz was mentioned by Shaun. Freeze it? I don’t know what that means. Personalize it? If criticizing a public figure is the same as personalizing it, then I did that. Otherwise, I don’t know what that means, either. Polarize it? Cruz did that with his rhetoric, not me.

Cruz is a neophyte by definition – he is the fifth least senior member of the Senate. He’s barely been there ten months. He’s introduced a whopping six pieces of legislation in that time, of which two were bills to either repeal or defund Obamacare, and one that would bar the use of drones to kill Americans on American soil (because that’s a major concern).

I didn’t know his record in private practice as an attorney. I know generally his record as SG. I do know his record in the Senate.

Sure, I’ve dreamed of arguing before the Supreme Court, but that’s not the career path I’ve taken with my law degree. Again, you’re trying to make this about me (sounds like you know your Alinsky), when it’s not. I’m critical of Ted Cruz because he is just another politician in a town full of politicians. There are good members of the class of 2012 and he’s not one of them.

David Obermark

Ted Cruz is setting himself up as being the “true conservative” for a run for the 2016 Presidential campaign in my opinion. Problem is that he does not realize that while all this grandstanding might be enough for him to win the nomination, it would be like an anchor dragging him down when he gets to the general election.

midwestconservative

Not to worry, the Dems will nominate their own extremist in Elizabeth Warren.

midwestconservative

You do realize he’s in the minority right? The jury is out on all of these new senators as long as the GOP is in the minority in the Senate. You don’t usually tout great “accomplishments” unless you have a party with enough seats willing to pass said legislation. And the Gang of 8 Bill is nothing to be proud of. It was a smidgen of what the GOP wanted and almost everything the Left wanted. And more importantly it fails to finally deal with the problem of illegal immigration.
As an advocate Cruz got the DC handgun banned overturned.

http://www.brianschoeneman.org/ Brian W. Schoeneman

I fully recognize that he’s in the minority. I’m not asking for him to pass landmark legislation, but being part of anything that might see the light of day would be nice.

Alan Gura was Heller’s lead attorney. All Cruz did was file an amicus brief.

Reginald Robbins Sr

Brian, I am a democrat and this thread reminds me of the same conversations that we were having at the beginning of the Clinton years. Old school Liberals vs the the DLC wing. The situation with your party will get a little worse in the short term but eventually the pendulum will swing back. It took Clinton a bit to drag the party kicking and screaming from the far left on Carter,Mondale and Kennedy but he did. Cruz will dominate for now but will fade. I have to say that I hope 2014 is bad for you guys so that the turn around will go quicker. Losing the house will shock the system just like it did for Clinton. I am not a republican but I understand the need for a strong republican party.

midwestconservative

Then you’re just going to be disappointed then. The GOP hasn’t nominated Conservatives as their standard bearers in either 08′ and 2012.
Obama isn’t your Reagan. He’s your Bush.

pinecone321

Oh, but Cruz has accomplished much in the Senate. He’s gone directly to the people to make his case, and he did make his case eloquently. Another thing he accomplished is that he pizzed you off Brian. Ha. He has support across the nation. What support have you ever earned from your piddly little admonishments here?

http://www.brianschoeneman.org/ Brian W. Schoeneman

Cruz hasn’t made his case. A majority of Americans disagree with him. He hasn’t pissed me off, either. Dealing with blowhards who do nothing all day but talk is about par for the course in this town.

As for comparing me to Ted Cruz, come on.

pinecone321

I never compared you to Cruz. Get that thought out of your head. I know that you couldn’t even shine his shoes let alone come close to what he has in fact accomplished. You wish you were in that league Brian. Not trying to be unkind, but you put yourself up to the ridicule you are getting, and especially admitting that you know little about Cruz. At least do a little research before you shoot your mouth off.

http://www.brianschoeneman.org/ Brian W. Schoeneman

You didn’t compare me to him, and then you start comparing me to him again? Are you even reading what you write?

You’re taking all of this a little too personally.

Jonathan Arnold

This is crazy. Cruz is a laughing stock. and worse…Senator Cruz and his cohorts did more damage to the United States then Snowden. He should be arrested, tried, and jailed for life if found guilty of treason. The Tea Party tried a coup using the budget, not guns, as their weapons. The average american is disgusted with the republican party. I am, and I’ve always been a staunch republican. Bottom line, the democrats have to gift the republicans elections…the republicans will not win on their own.

bippo

Brian, I think Ted Olson might disagree with you regarding the role of an SG as a mere advocate. And I would suspect Cruz accomplished a lot more as a mere advocate than you did as a behind-the-scenes speech writer to the Secretary of Labor. Just sayin’.

http://www.brianschoeneman.org/ Brian W. Schoeneman

I’m not arguing that I’m more accomplished than Ted Cruz. Where are you guys getting this from? Attacking me is pointless – Cruz is older than I am, been a lawyer longer than I am. Of course he’s more accomplished than I am. I am saying that Cruz has accomplished less than almost all of his fellow Senators, but has gotten an inordinate amount of media coverage for his lack of output.

We don’t need any more show horses in the Senate – there are too many already.

pinecone321

Good Lord Brian can you please at least come up with something less lame than he’s older than me, and has been a lawyer longer than you have? So are you saying you are too young and inexperienced to go head to head with someone like Ted Cruz? You made that pretty obvious long ago.

http://www.brianschoeneman.org/ Brian W. Schoeneman

No, I could take Ted Cruz on pretty easily. It’s not hard to debate someone who is simply spouting talking points. But for some reason I now have to measure my resume against a sitting U.S. Senator in order to criticize him? Really?

bippo

Huh, Brian, I didn’t realize you were a national champion in debate, as Ted Cruz was. I’d watch it.

bippo

Meaning I’d watch the debate between you two as you try to take him on “pretty easily”–sorry about the ambiguous sentence.

http://www.brianschoeneman.org/ Brian W. Schoeneman

I was highly ranked in extemporaneous speech in High School – 4th in the state. Ted Cruz was a national champion in debate, but that debate organization was notoriously pro-Ivy League and was run by the students. I can hold my own.

brucehmajors

Very dubious.

midwestconservative

What accomplishments have Warner or Kaine achieved during their time on the Budget committee?
At least in Indiana I can be proud of my Senators er. Senator ( Coats) and former Senator Lugar.
What has Mark Warner done in all his time in Washington other then tow the line for Harry Reid?

DavidH

Be a NSA apologist? (Warner’s on the Intelligence Committee and does not seem to favor surveillance reform.)

midwestconservative

Warner is also on the budget committee, and has so far failed to pass a budget.

http://www.brianschoeneman.org/ Brian W. Schoeneman

If Warner and Kaine were doing what Cruz is doing, I’d be leveling the exact same criticism at them. Although Warner has tried to work with folks on the other side, so I give him that credit.

midwestconservative

Warner has NOT tried to work with people on the other side. That is complete BS. Virginia should be ashamed for foisting Tim Kaine upon the rest of the Country.
In case you’ve been completely unobservant Warner has voted for nearly every far left crack idea that’s been put in front of him over the last 5 years.
Warner claims to be a “radical centrist” but doesn’t have the votes to back it.
This same man voted to keep the Medical Device Tax. A tax on innovation and science. Why? Because Reid told him to do it. The man sat on the Budget committee ( while campaigning on how he “fixed” Virginia’s budget problems) and has so far failed to pass a budget in each of the last 5 years.
What has Warner done? Can you answer that?

http://www.brianschoeneman.org/ Brian W. Schoeneman

I’m not talking about votes. I’m talking about actively working with the Gang of Eight and other groups of Senators on bipartisan legislation. Nothing has really come from it, and I’m not defending him, but he’s not as bad as some folks in the Senate, especially on the Democratic side.

midwestconservative

The Gang of eight bill was a pathetic excuse for “bipartisanship” it was proposed by Dems for Dems. It got some GOP Senators, but I’ve yet to see a single GOP congressman back it.
Get back to me when Warner actually votes for something the GOP proposes. Like Keystone Pipeline.
The problem with the Senate Dems is the fact that they’ve allowed their extremists to control them. (Reid, Durbin, Schumer)

http://www.shaunkenney.com Shaun Kenney

I would concede that Ken is el hefe and owns any mistakes made, but on the big races the consultants run the show because they bring the cash. They create the plan, they execute the strategy, and deviation from the plan usually signals death — because strategies take time to develop.

Blaming Rexrode is in poor taste, IMO. I doubt very seriously that Rexrode had much control or say over the direction of the campaign.

As for “let Ken be Ken” this is a mantra we have pounded the table on from day one. The campaign, too afraid to do this, has been very aggressive about throwing under the bus anyone who threatens to create another “macaca” moment — even good friends and loyalists known to have stuck through with Cuccinelli in years past.

I happen to be a Tom Davis fan. Not so much JMDD… but Tom Davis? Consummate politician who gets the long game… and whom I expect to be a part of rebuilding after this year.

It will be somewhat ironic that Cuccinelli’s defeat — should it occur — will have 1000 fathers. Bolling will take credit. Pro-lifers will equally insist that their issues were not heard. Davis will crow. Some of the LG candidates who did not pitch in after the convention will claim that Jackson pulled down the ticket… everyone will insist that it could have been different if (fill in the blank here). Sadly, Cuccinelli will take all the blame… but undeservedly so. I cannot in good conscience blame Ken for the condition of this campaign. He was failed and hamstrung from within and without. Shame on us for allowing it to happen, shame on us for being patient when action (and open criticism) was required in June.

We still haven’t figured it out from the 2012 elections, guys. Campaigns soft on substance and long on criticism will fail. Consultants always win the election. Moreover, amateurs talk tactics and professionals talk logistics. Cuccinelli’s campaign was tactics, tactics, tactics all the way… and there are precious few people to blame for that. No one built the logistics train, guys.

Sadly, the intransigence and bunker mentality that has become this gubernatorial run has made it impervious to improvement. It’s no secret that it is widely felt and resented.

…but it’ll sure make for an interesting Advance.

http://www.brianschoeneman.org/ Brian W. Schoeneman

Shaun, when has Ken not been Ken? I have seen zero evidence that anybody, including the consultants, is moderating his message.

http://www.shaunkenney.com Shaun Kenney

Can we name one major policy initiative that the campaign has hammered home consistently over a four week period that does not involve calling McAuliffe a scumbag?

Let’s be more specific than this. Can we find the aggressive social conservative policy initiative that all critics (moderate, liberal, progs, media) claim Ken is orchestrating? I have not seen such a blitz from the campaign… nor have I seen a great deal of evidence of marshaling the so-called “God, guns, and gays” coalition with which social conservatives are so routinely pilloried.

Truth is, pro-lifers have been given very little to hang their hats upon.
Marriage proponents? Nothing from the campaign.
Gunnies? Nothing on constitutional carry.

The problem here is the Ken Cuccinelli is an outstanding conservative with bold, innovative ideas on how to move Virginia forward — standing firm on our values while making sure we take responsible, bold action to fix Virginia’s tax code and make education work for our teachers and our students in a 21st century environment. His record on defending the defenseless is impeccable, whether that’s protecting children or standing firm for abused women, and yes — Ken could be the first real governor who could do amazing things for Virginia’s education system, reforming our justice system, fixing our broken tax code, and even restoring the relationship between Richmond and our localities…

…and no one knows a damn thing about any of that.

So for that, because we have not “let Ken be Ken” one can only blame those around him for not establishing the narrative. They are fitting the man into a hypothesis of what they think can win in Virginia… and it is, was, and will remain a massive critical error performed only by either the amateurish or the pompous.

They’re destroying Ken, almost by design. And yes, I’m angry about it because I believe Ken Cuccinelli to be a superlative candidate and an excellent ambassador for all that is right with the Republican Party. It’s a shame, is all.

Fred

Doubling down on the sodomy law wasn’t a good idea. Saying that gay people are “soulless” wasn’t a good idea. Backing “personhood” wasn’t a good idea. Oh, and they were all Cooch’s ideas.

Fred

Doubling down on the sodomy law wasn’t a good idea. Saying that gay people are “soulless” wasn’t a good idea. Backing “personhood” wasn’t a good idea. Oh, and they were all Cooch’s ideas.

Michael Polito

McDonnell had the same positions when he ran. It caused no problem.

Fred

McDonnell thought that making sodomy between consenting adults, including married people, a felony was a good idea? Even AFTER the Supreme Court found it unconstitutional? McDonnell stated that gay people are soulless?

Doug Brown

SK,
You seem to be coming to praise and bury Ken at the same time.

What has McAuliffe’s campaign and his supporters done in this campaign? Have they’ve done anything but attack Ken? What grand vision has McAuliffe offered other than he’s not Cuccinelli?

I see nothing wrong with the Cuccinelli campaign hammering home just how bad McAuliffe would be for Virginia.

And while the campaign should also be promoting the positive, what’s to stop supporters from stepping up and picking up the slack that you see in the campaign messaging?

You do a great job in talking up the positives of a Governor Cuccinelli, when you’re not writing the campaign’s obit in the same post,

nmill005

Sadly, McAuliffe and his campaign have out raised and out maneuvered Cooch at every step. The polls show this. Another abysmal showing by Cooch in today’s poll released by CNU.

http://www.shaunkenney.com Shaun Kenney

What’s stopping supporters? Oh… about $3 million.

Bottom line is that the Cuccinelli campaign sets the narrative, and they have failed to do so.

Doug Brown

Gee so many rich republicans throughout the country and not a dime to spare. What a pitiful Party; and please middle class America, what’s left of you, please send your last dime to Ted Cruz so that he can keep up his supply of brill crème to look sharp for the camera.

brucehmajors

Running away from the shutdown.

Catherine Stone McNickle

You forgot the big enchilada – the McDonnell/Star Scientific Factor. It is the perfect storm against our state ticket, federal, state, local issues/scandals/fractures…..lest we forget the other enchilada, national mood against the TP and Congress.

http://www.shaunkenney.com Shaun Kenney

That is EXTREMELY true… it took away our single greatest argument against McAuliffe — and sadly, you can’t blame Bob McDonnell for that.

Blame the Republicans who lacked the integrity and moral fortitude to call on is resignation… we should be truly ashamed at our own party for that.

David Eggleston

No different than the bunker mentality here at BD, Shaun. Your morbid obsession with attacking Bill Bolling has done a lot to alienate center-right folks from supporting the Cooch. From all I’ve seen, Ken IS being Ken, and is more busy like yourself attacking fellow Republicans who don’t meet the purity criteria, which, in Ken’s case, is total loyalty to the sub-par rabble-rouser we’ve nominated to represent the RPV in November. Bolling won’t be crowing in November about a Cuccinelli loss; you will already be doing it for him.

http://www.shaunkenney.com Shaun Kenney

Bill who?

yippeekayay

This is that oddly condescending variety of pompous aloofness that is peculiar to Virginia.

midwestconservative

The attitude expressed there, shows that Virginia deserves McAuliffe. Unfortunately I have family in the Commonwealth who will likely have to suffer for the next four years. Unless Ken pulls this one out of the fire.

Bruce P. Majors

As a DC resident, I’m curious – do you mean Virginia or just NoVa?

yippeekayay

As a former resident of every major region of the state from Arlington to Tidewater to Bath County to Richmond, I’ve found it endemic to the entire state and most to be found in places like Charlottesville, Williamsburg, Alexandria, Lexington, the top floors of the law firms, the cloak rooms of the legislature, the clubhouses of the country clubs, etc. etc. In short, I believe it’s a Virginia establishment mentality, bless their hearts.

1AlaskaBorn2

I’ve lived in MA, NH, RI, FL, CA and VA (for 30 years), and hands down MA is at the top of the list for pompous, aloof, standoffish, overly-cautious, and shiver with distaste when encountering “new” people who may have been their neighbors of 20 years and living next door. Second on my list is RI (Newport specifically). Sure, there’s the very-definitely super rich living there and then there’s the second-hand rich, who serve the super rich, and who cop that “attitude.” Newport reaped what it sowed when the Navy closed its base years ago. I’ve lived in VA too long to see what you see, objectively.

yippeekayay

Fortunately I’ve never had to live in MA or RI. I hail from the West, which is best of course. Big sky country. Inherently egalitarian and libertarian all at once. A man is measured by the steadiness of his gaze and the strength of his grip on the opportunities that come his way, not the color of his ties or the age of his money or the letters stacked up behind his name. I find the East Coast to be incredibly uptight in general with a special smiling disingenuity that seems prevalent in DC and intensifies as you move south. I suspect the opposite is true as you head north, the uptightness is accompanied by increasingly dour straightforwardness, at least if the stereotypes I’ve encountered hold any truth.

pinecone321

“Putting Ken on stage with Ted Cruz makes Cruz look more useless than he already is.”

What a petty, small, little man comment. If you had a quarter of the accomplishments Cruz has under his belt, you wouldn’t be pouting constantly here at this site. Put your record up against Cruz Brian. Let’s compare.

http://www.brianschoeneman.org/ Brian W. Schoeneman

What? Because I think Ken has actual accomplishments and all Cruz has is that he got elected? I give him credit – he’s not a bad lawyer. But this town is full of good lawyers. That and a two bucks will get you a cup of coffee. If Cruz wants to be a good legislator, he needs to stop with the grandstanding and start doing. He’s managed to alienate almost the entire Republican Senate conference. That’s one thing I’ve not managed to do, so I guess I’ve got him there.

pinecone321

Cruz alienating the liberal Republican wing of the Senate members is a fantastic accomplishment. A little sunlight on what they are really doing hurts doesn’t it Brian. They’ve been exposed as the go-along to get-alongers they’ve been for a long time. Sorry to burst your bubble Brain, but Cruz has been infact the conservative leader, when there has been no leadership from the R party in Washinton in a very long time. I suspect in the future you are going to be a very unhappy guy.

http://www.brianschoeneman.org/ Brian W. Schoeneman

There is no liberal Republican wing in the Senate. There are perhaps two Senators left who could be called moderates. The rest have retired. Cruz isn’t leading anything. The caucus hates him.

I will only be very unhappy if we elect more Ted Cruz clones to the Senate. But I don’t think we’re going to do that, because the American people are getting tired of do-nothing-but-talk politicians like Cruz and the President.

Bruce P. Majors

Perhaps his plan is not to lead the caucus, but to destroy them.

Bruce P. Majors

Boehner? McCain? Off with their heads.

Bruce P. Majors

All the Cruz bashing from Obamanoids and RINOs is funny, cuz he’s had you bitches tied up in knots for two weeks. You should be in stocks in the public square, your homes seized and returned the taxpayers, your spouses and children sold into indentured servitude in China to reduce the debt. But for now, this will do.

Posts like this are really helpful. At the national level, Republicans are pulling together the circular firing squad instead of praising Ted Cruz for exposing the jackboot, irresponsibly inflexible ways of the President and the Democratic leadership. And here in Virginia, we turn on our own guy instead of calling the media to account for failing to expose McAuliffe’s campaign strategy of viciously negative attack ads and distortions combined with flip-flops and indistinct positions on the issues (as reported by Fred Barnes this summer) — not to mention for giving him a pass on the Caramadre scandal. I’m disgusted.

http://www.shaunkenney.com Shaun Kenney

I believe Coby Dillard has a contrary view on that… and sadly, this has been the M.O. of Cuccinelli staffers from day one:

Sad… but there it is. When someone points at a bridge that’s broken, you don’t send in the warplanes to napalm the rest. Campaign management is about 80% diplomacy and 20% example. This idea that we can shit on fellow conservatives and Republicans and expect them to come along for the big win might work in Full Metal Jacket… but not in the Old Dominion.

Bruce P. Majors

Here is my take away of the past week, as a non-Republican. The Republican Party is about to go on a diet, maybe even chemo. It’s going to become temporarily more unpopular, maybe even smaller, by forcing out all the MSNBC tolerated RINO lap dogs like John Boehner and John McCain. Will it survive the operation? The only other option is to continue being the Demoncrats zombie sex toy, servicing them whenever it is demanded.

Daniel Cortez

Yes Norm you are correct the Virginia electorate doesn’t have the same spark….and do you blame them? Less than 40 percent will show up for election day as voter apathy grows everyday the government is closed for business and Republicans continue to take the blame. This has to be the worst run campaign since Ollie North’s weak attempt at office. The race is over….sadly a good man, a very good man like E. W. Jackson probably will go down with Cooch. LaCivita good man that he is and a respected Marine combat veteran is paid to never say die. The independents who ultimately pay his salary through donations must call it like it is. The race is being lost….. badly…The problem is not that Ken is not being Ken, the problem is that Ken IS Ken……Bolling a genuine job creator would have faired much better. But what is done is done….and Obenshain can be the saving grace….Conservatives and independents should get behind him now. It is their only hope. Vote Obenshain.

midwestconservative

You do realize there isn’t a spit of difference between Obenshain and Cuccinelli? right?

Daniel Cortez

I’ll think for myself partner and yes their is considerable difference in my opinion and that is the one that counts to this voter.

midwestconservative

Your opinion on the candidates is one thing, but the facts are far different. Mark Obenshain and Ken Cuccinelli were ideological allies in the Senate, some have referred to them as “bench buddies”
They are essentially the same on issues, though different in rhetoric and tactics.

Daniel Cortez

Life is change for a politician or he or she won’t survive. I have ideological “bench buddies” but I remain my own man and don’t follow the lemmings off the cliff. I know both and have studied both men and you are wrong. Obenshain is not in lock step with Cooch on every issue and is worthy of my vote. Cuccinelli is not. You vote your conscience….and as an independent I will vote mine.

Fred

E.W. Jackson is a good man? The man who says gay rights has killed more black men than the Klan and Jim Crow? The man who says yoga leads to satanism? My goodness, I hope you all keep running these “good men”. Obenshain, didn’t he say that women who miscarry outside of a hospital have to report the incident to the police? That means if the period is late ladies, better call your local constable!

Daniel Cortez

Not surprisingly you have taken Bishop Jackson out of context Fred. You vote for who you want and I will vote for I want…and Obenshain will get my vote. As an independent I want some type of moral conduct and standard in my family and my elected officials. The anything goes mentality is taking us into ruination Fred whether you accept it or not.

Fred

Moral conduct and standards are great, just don’t try to make everyone follow your code under force of law. Follow what you choose in your family and the rest of us will do the same. The sexually repressed Cooch and the paranoid Bishop are better off in the private sector.

Daniel Cortez

Fred my personal moral code is for my family and yours or the lack of is for your family. I’ll not judge you and will not be judged by you. That will be for someone bigger than both of us who will judge us both in the after life. Public law is for all of us to obey. That is unless you are like many politician who think they are above the law.

MD Russ

“Circular firing squad, Present Arms!”

I told you so.

Fred

Ready, Fire, Aim!

midwestconservative

You’d think Republicans would know better then go to the post. By the way how far down in the polls was Ken in October of 2007?
The last time he had a close race.

Alexis Rose Bank

If you want to pin a Cuccinelli failure on someone, the man to blame is Bob McDonnell.

http://www.brianschoeneman.org/ Brian W. Schoeneman

Cuccinelli hasn’t failed yet, but if he does the only person to pin the failure on will be Ken, not McDonnell or anybody else.

pinecone321

You have to be kidding. Bob McDonald has pulled the entire Republican party down in VA. Not only because of his scandal issues, but, even more so because of his governing as a liberals dream. I promise his push for and passage for the highest tax increases in VA. history has depressed most all Republicans, and has caused many to believe there really isn’t much difference between Democrats and Republicans. That is directly affecting Cuccinelli, and it would affect any other Republican candidate running, except Bolling of course.

http://www.brianschoeneman.org/ Brian W. Schoeneman

McDonald?

pinecone321

Yes. McDonnell.

Alexis Rose Bank

This may be news to you, but getting involved in an ugly corruption scandal during the height of the election season tends to be pretty bad for one’s party’s chances in said upcoming election. Sorry for the radical crazy idea here I know you have trouble with such things.

http://www.brianschoeneman.org/ Brian W. Schoeneman

Ugly corruption scandals affect the individual involved in the scandal, not the whole party. Plenty of Republicans are going to win in November even with the McDonnell scandal hanging over their heads. Ken had little to do with the whole thing.

Again, when a candidate loses, the only person to blame for it is that candidate. No one else. It’s called personal responsibility. I know it may be a radical crazy idea, but it’s an easy concept.

Fred

Ken took lavish gifts from Mr. Williams then “forgot” to disclose them until the heat was on. Kind of takes the air out of your argument that the other guy is corrupt, eh?

http://www.brianschoeneman.org/ Brian W. Schoeneman

We must have different definitions of lavish. Ken is not corrupt. Far from it.

brucehmajors

Not a all. MCAullife and Hillary are piles of feces independent of the sins of anyone else.

Bruce P. Majors

So you think McAullife and Hillary have no chance then?

Alexis Rose Bank

no that rule only applies to Republicans, which is why so many people here aren’t aware of it.

Guy Cabot

As a liberal, I’ m more than pleased to see the GOP doesn’t get it.

“Let Ken be Ken.”

Lose by double digits.

I gotta admit it’s a tough task for the VA GOP–you’re running on a platform of science denial, racial discrimination, and anti-women’s rights–the tide is just running against you. Virtually every issue the Cooch is running against is not headed his direction.

May as well face it, you guys screwed up. Even hardcore Dems as myself regard McAuliffe as an empty suit stuffed with $100 bills. But you guys found possibly only the sadsack in VA he could lose to. And, sweet Jeebus, you guys added EW Jackson–someone so weird that each campaign appearance is a circus gone horribly wrong.

Daniel Cortez

Guy as an independent voter who votes the person and not the party I take issue with your comments about E.W. Jackson…he is a genuine Christian gentleman and honorable veteran. He is entitled to his biblical beliefs and stances. It saddens me Republican establishment types have treated him so poorly. He has all my respect. Yes many agree with your assessment about McAuliffe….We will all reap what we sow Nov. 5th.

Guy Cabot

Sorry, Jackson is a kook and a grifter.

Fred

Amen on that! Yoga leads to satanism and…a great butt!

brucehmajors

Clearly not. McCaskill, Mikulski, Grayson, Rangel, Frank, even Hilary. No good butt in the world of Demonrat pie cows.

pinecone321

You were describing McAuliffe right. The description fits him to a T.

Bruce P. Majors

So are McAulliffe, Hilary Clinton, the Obama’s, the Jackson’s, Charlie Rangel, etc etc. Funny that someone felching them like you is unaware. Guess they taste the same as non-criminals?

Guy Cabot

You should ask your mom, Brucie.

brucehmajors

You are a silly whore man. You felch ruling class grifters, attack their challengers, and smear private people you don’t know. Worthless trash. Someone should call CPS.

Bruce P. Majors

He is certainly colorful. He also came out last year for partial decriminalization and ending the drug war.

midwestconservative

Yeah, Ken is so unelectable that he won three elections in Fairfax County, and he won the AG race by double digits.

Guy Cabot

Sure, I guess come election night, you can blame it on the lame stream media, Kenya, Benghazi or the usual suspects.

midwestconservative

1) Wasn’t going to blame it on “Kenya” of all places or any national issue.
2) It’s deeply concerning that you’d demean the actual genuine tragedy of Benghazi by comparing it to “birtherism”
But spitting upon our men and women serving overseas is a pattern with the Left so I should have expected.

Bruce P. Majors

Wow. What a complete little Obama ho. You pretend that the murder and rape of an American ambassador and its coverup, probably because something shady was going on (weapons sales to Obama’s fave bad guys) isn’t a horrific crime. You are a piece of slime.

Guy Cabot

Drunken commenting is no good, Brucie.

brucehmajors

It doesn’t take booze for someone to call a Demonrat like you the slime that you are. Sad that you are raising a child.

Bruce P. Majors

And you are running a crony capitalist who commits fraud for a living. It’s like I walked in on you giving blow jobs in a truck stop rest room and you gloat that the other guy has jizz in his hair, while it is running out your nose.

ghostofteddalton

From everything I hear, I expect Cuccinelli to finish 3rd in voters aged 18-40. No hyperbole in that prediction at all.
People on the right are screeching “media bias” at all these “death throes of the GOP” stories. But I’ll be honest, I don’t think those stories are inaccurate.

In my opinion, if Libertarians run a credible young candidate…..they are more likely to attract young votes than the GOP. Gary Johnson got 1.3% of the popular vote last year (the LP’s biggest ever vote). He proved popular with the Daily Show crowd and college students. I think the LP really is more popular among smaller gov’t types below 40 than the GOP.

I can really see a future where the LP is a 3rd force in American politics, though I think that future will be dominated by the D’s. People can say whatever they want about Sarvis or any other LIbertarian….their votes are disproportionately from the GOP’s hide. And they will be if the LP becomes a bigger player in elections. As long as American elections stay winner take all….the GOP really could be in it’s final act. There’s simply no way they can be competitive without those LP votes.

midwestconservative

Wow, so inaccurate, for one Gary Johnson did not get 1.3% of the popular vote, he got less then a percentage( unless you’re talking specifically about Virginia) in either event Sarvis is an empty vessel with very little plans other then “I’m not those guys” and he’ll be lucky to get 5% on election day.
I do not give a flying crap what the “Daily show” crowd wants in a Republican candidate. If they want to be unemployed they can go ahead and vote Democrat. When they’ve finally had enough of crushing debt and no job, they vote Republican. Same as they did in 2009.
I am under no obligation to pander to people too stupid to vote their best interests.
People who vote LP don’t vote Republican. nor did Gary Johnson’s candidacy have any actual affect on the election.

MD Russ

Gary Who? The main reason that the Libertarians attract so many young people is because they offer simplistic, cookie-cutter solutions to complex problems. Once these children grow up they will discover that the world is not nearly as black and white as the Libertarians would have them believe. There is an old expression about dealing with young pups who think that they everything: “I like you. You remind me of me when I was young and stupid.”

midwestconservative

Johnson failed spectacularly considering he was a former two term Governor. The man couldn’t even poll one percent. And it isn’t Johnson so much as the idiotic Libertarian platform.

Bruce P. Majors

Wrong. The problem is that our system is set up to prevent non-establishment parties from getting on the ballot or getting any media. They have to spend half their funds on ballot drives and they aren’t funded by bailed out banks and educrat cartels like the Demonrats are.

Gary (and Sarvis) are also a little cerebral and calm for campaigning. Both could use some cocaine sprinkled on their morning cereal.

midwestconservative

More “it’s not our fault the system is against us” bullcrap.

MD Russ

mid,

That is the mating call of a Libertarian. “Our polling in single digits is proof that the system is rigged against us–it couldn’t possibly be because our ideas are impractical and unpopular.”

brucehmajors

Rofl. You are the one dumb little bitch! When libertarians poll higher you say they are spoilers and should be excluded; when they poll low you say they are irrelevant and should be ignored.

If you’d prefer revolution where people just flush slime like you we can get there I guess.

brucehmajors

Facts are only “bull crap” to a whiney child like you who can’t face them.

midwestconservative

Win 10% then and prove me wrong.

Bruce P. Majors

Rofl. You poor sad twit. Most GOPsters couldn’t even fathom libertarianism. Shove a copy of a Hayek book up your GI tract, and see if you can absorb it that way.

MD Russ

Is that how most Libertardians gain knowledge, through anal adsorption? That would explain a lot.

brucehmajors

It would be your only way, being a GI tract with a facial anus at one end from which you mouth fart.

midwestconservative

You’ve upset another one

MD Russ

I know. But pissing off a Libertardian is like shooting fish in a barrel. Instinctively you know that it is wrong to take advantage of these weak-minded creatures, but it is so damned hard to pass up because they are so annoying.

David Eggleston

Don’t feed the sexually-repressed trolls.

Adrian Flanagan

“Cuccinelli’s campaign “won’t let Ken be Ken,” Kenney said” So of course we already the post-defeat narrative all lined up: Cuccinelli should have won, but voter’s didn’t get to know the real Cuccinelli. Only problem is, the more people know about Cuccinelli, the less they like him. Conservatism is stuck in the failed ideas of the 1980s and can’t seem to move forward in a rapidly-changing world. Cuccinelli is not the direction to go if you want to win elections.

midwestconservative

And Terry McAuliffe isn’t the direction you want to go if you want a job. Let me guess you’re an Obama voter. How’s that working out for yah?

Fred

Great, thanks for asking!

Bruce P. Majors

Oh Terry will give all the parasites who support him a job, funded by taxing you. How do you think a pretty moron like Terry got a job?

midwestconservative

He won’t be taxing me. I live in Indiana, unfortunately several family members will likely have to put up with this douche.

Fred

Kenny won’t give any of his friends jobs? Has Kenny every had a private sector job?

Brooke Willson

Most Virginians I know, including this one, are disgusted with this year’s choices and will hold their nose when they vote for either candidate. If there’s any comfort, it’s that in Virginia the governor is relatively weak compared with many other states, and is limited constitutionally to one four-year term. Re: jobs, Virginia depends hugely on the federal government for jobs, and has been slammed by the sequester, not to mention the shutdown. We can thank the austerity-obsessed in Congress for that.

Edward Smith

I do not know , but I will remind my self to ask john mc Cain ,Sarah palin,mitt Romney,Paul Ryan ,I wonder why the American people did’nt vote for them.How is it working out for you,maybe you need to stay to the far right with the people who have problems with people being different.one thing about it you or no man can stop Gods plan.who won back to back elections for president lately

Dr. K

Let him be himself? Please do…he scares the crap out of women and the public school system.
He’s also shown some Palinist grifting attitudes…take the gifts, pay for play. Not good…for you all. My mayor, Will Sessoms, is a republican, and backs McAuliffe. Says a lot.

Bruce P. Majors

An unwarranted slur on Palin. No rape jokes about her daughters? You’ll never make it onto the Late Show.

Fred

Well, if it were a legitimate rape joke then your body could shut that whole thing down!

Dr. K

Unwarranted? You must have a cranial/anal impaction in regards to her actions and siphoning funds off of her PAC, and all of her little monetary adventures…she really knows how to work the rubes.
And also…YOU mentioned her daughter, not I. Having one, I dont think even that thought crossed my mind, so keep your petty and rude tendencies to yourself. Dont place words or actions into a conversation to suit your own argument.

brucehmajors

The lies you are regurgitating come from the same Demonrats that told rape jokes about her in 2008. The smell you smell is yourself.

Dr. K

Bruce, seriously, go fuck yourself. Youre an asshat of only the third degree…Demonrats? Really?

nmill005

Will Sessoms has no right to call himself a republican. He has never seen a dollar he couldn’t spend at the expense of the tax payers. He is a sellout.

1AlaskaBorn2

If the Republican Party includes Mayor Will Sessoms on its rolls, if the Republican Party invites the Mayor to Republican functions, includes him in fund raising, committees, strategy sessions, then one assumes/knows, Mayor Sessoms is a Republican. However, I’m a life-long Democrat (Boston bred and all that entails) and am dismayed by the candidates for Governor of which we must choose one. Cuccinelli (KooKoosmelly) represents self-centeredness – his values and – well I won’t go on; trust the mainstream media (not Faux) to learn more about this 1/2 brain lobe’s values and principles. McCauliffe – well, not much there…. Spouts promises and changes but does not elaborate on how he plans to achieve them. So, as I consider my options while in the voting booth (actually paper ballot because electronic machines have been and are corrupted/hacked), I sigh and choose the better of the worst candidate of this Governor’s-office one-term state.

Bruce P. Majors

Ken ran a Romneyfied campaign and his supporters then blamed his loss on Libertarians, who mainly attract people from the near majority of Americans who had stopped voting entirely. Most Democrat pols should be in jail; most Republicans should be paddled and sent to their rooms without dinner.

http://www.southsidecentral.com/ Bruce Hedrick

“McAuliffe is a sleazebag and, oh, by the way, did we mention that McAuliffe is a sleazebag?” would have and still will work if somebody important actually says it directly and shows why.

midwestconservative

Who? John Warner? McDonnell? Bolling?

http://www.southsidecentral.com/ Bruce Hedrick

All of the above and more.

Fred

He had the Duggers stump for him today. They’re bound to appeal to moderates, right???

Willis Turner

As others have pointed out, Republicans are going through their version of the 1960s. Democrats then had veered so far to the left that the leadership lived in a bubble of liberalism, so convinced that theirs was the only correct vision for America, that they became completely tone deaf to what the majority of Americans actually cared about. That’s how they managed, with great enthusiasm, to nominate a born loser like McGovern.

The GOP is in the same boat now. The right wing of the party is so far right that they’ve lost sight of where the actual middle is. The governor’s race is a great example. The Democrats could hardly have nominated a weaker candidate than McAuliffe. The guy has neither depth for thoughtful voters nor charisma for shallow ones. The only reason he’s ahead is that he doesn’t scare the daylights out of mainstream voters the way Cuccinelli does.

Yet, every time they take a trouncing, the GOP squeaky wheels clamor that it’s because their guy wasn’t conservative enough. For those of us old enough to remember, the parallels between the Tea Party and the New Left are almost spooky.

Brooke Willson

Two anecdotes from Virginia Republican friends of mine: the first is a 30-something hard-core conservative who is going to vote Democratic for the first time in his life because the Tea Party manipulated the nominations process, bypassing primaries which would have favored Lt. Governor Bill Bolling, who had stepped aside four years ago so Bob McDonnell could run for Governor. Bolling (whom I know personally) has been conspicuously silent about endorsing Cuccinelli. My friend (also a friend of Bolling) is furious because he feels the Tea Party really doesn’t believe in democracy (e.g., primary elections).

The second is from a seasoned Richmond political insider who was a member of the Gilmore (Republican) administration. He was talking to a member of a Knights of Columbus chapter who had been visited twice by Cuccinelli, campaigning. “I’m not voting for him, and nobody I know is voting for him,” said the Knight. “The problem is THEY (i.e., non-Republicans) don’t like our guy, and WE don’t like him, either.”

Jonathan Arnold

Both candidates are utterly terrible in their own ways. Why cant the major political parties have a decent candidate?

jootjoint

Ken Cuccinelli will be defeated in Virginia!

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